Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory

New Capabilities

Operating A-Lab autonomous materials facility

A new generation of AI systems can now design, execute, and analyze materials experiments with minimal human involvement. In January 2026, researchers at China's Shenzhen Institute of Advanced Technology published a system called MARS that coordinates 19 large language model agents with robotic platforms—optimizing perovskite nanocrystals in 10 iterations and designing novel water-stable composites in 3.5 hours. Traditional materials discovery takes 10 to 20 years from laboratory concept to commercial product.

Updated Feb 1